The Most Interesting Animal Mothers and Their Giving Birth
Motherhood is a beautiful thing, and it’s no different in the animal kingdom. From crabs to squid to tortoises, there are some truly fascinating birthing processes that animal moms go through. Here’s a look at some of the most incredible animal moms and their birthing processes.
Crab Moms
Crab moms are some of the most possessive mothers in the animal kingdom. They keep their babies inside their tummies, which is actually an underside exoskeleton called an apron. Once the eggs are fertilized, they pass out of the crab’s body and are deposited under the apron. The apron is actually the curled under abdomen, having small appendages to which the eggs attach. When the babies are born, the apron is meant to keep them safe. Moreover, the underside tends to shed once the babies are big enough. It may sound creepy, but the whole process is completely painless for the crab moms.
Squid Laying Eggs
Giant black-eyed squid give birth to their tiny copies while illuminating the ocean with stars. A female squid can lay up to a thousand eggs in a single go, a behavior that had never been previously spotted. In 2012, a team of researchers found that deep sea squid brood eggs in clusters of huge jelly-like masses by holding them in her arms until they hatch. This is a parental care approach for deep sea species of squid.
Yolk Sac Tortoises
At the Yolk Sac Tortoises, a bite-sized story hatched out of one of the tortoises eggs. Struggling to crawl out on planet Earth, the newborn conjoined siblings were spotted sharing the same yolk sack. Since the owners were pretty curious about their survival, they took their chance anyway with floss in order to separate the two out of this misery. It worked out perfectly fine, and the twins are doing great at the incubator, drinking water and getting nourished. They are named Bumblebee and Yellow Jacket.
Worst Parents EverWhile most animal moms are fiercely protective of their young, there are some that are the worst parents ever. Take the Australian Magpie, for example. These birds are known to abandon their young if they are not able to feed them. They will even go as far as to.
Source: https://fancy4me.com